


I don't want silver, I just want gold.

by CoolestLemon



Category: IT (Movies - Muschietti), IT - Stephen King
Genre: Alternate Universe - No Pennywise (IT), Amputee Georgie Denbrough, Bar Owner Richie Tozier, Bill Denbrough & Eddie Kaspbrak Are Best Friends, Bisexual Bill Denbrough, Crime Boss Stanley Uris, Driver Ben Hanscom, Gay Eddie Kaspbrak, Gay Richie Tozier, Gay Stanley Uris, Georgie Denbrough Lives, M/M, Mechanic Eddie Kaspbrak, Organized Crime, Private Investigator Beverly Marsh, Richie Tozier & Stanley Uris Are Best Friends, Writer Bill Denbrough
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-02
Updated: 2020-02-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 10:42:47
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 20,510
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22085839
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CoolestLemon/pseuds/CoolestLemon
Summary: Bill Denbrough has been living with the guilt of his brother's accident for years. All he wanted is to be able to provide for his family since he believes that it was his fault that Georgie needed such intensive medical help.Eddie Kaspbrak has had a tough year and his best friend, Bill is the only guy he can trust. When he meets bar-owner, Richie Tozier, Eddie finds himself sucked into his world, dragging Bill along for the ride.AKA the Reddie & Stenbrough crime AU that I've been working on since October.
Relationships: Ben Hanscom/Beverly Marsh, Bill Denbrough/Stanley Uris, Eddie Kaspbrak/Richie Tozier, Minor or Background Relationship(s), One Sided Mike Hanlon/Stanley Uris
Comments: 18
Kudos: 76





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello and welcome to the crime-boss/coffee-shop worker AU that I've been working on since October. Honestly, the concept is a little bit weird and it will take a few chapters to get to the actual plot because of all the build-up and character introductions but hopefully, it all works out well. 
> 
> Please leave any comments of what you liked or disliked or anything you want to see in future chapters. And, of course, Kudos always helps me to know how you guys are feeling about my story.

**_Eddie Kaspbrak Meets a Guy_ **

Eddie Kaspbrak looked into the full-length mirror in his bedroom and examined his appearance. He’d always been short, barely scraping 5”6 but with the addition of his favourite pair of heels, he was nearly 4 inches taller, a height that immediately made him feel much more confident. Not to mention that the heels worked beautifully with his tight velvet pants to make his legs and his ass more defined. On the top, he had a simple silk shirt that hung loosely over his toned body. Eddie knew that he looked good.

“Are you sure you want to go out?” Eddie’s best friend and roommate Bill asked, leaning on his door and appraising him.

Eddie spun around to face his best friend with a bright smile. “Yeah, I think it’s time.”

Bill grinned back, happy to see his close friend looking so content with himself. He didn’t dare to think of the Eddie of just a few weeks ago, who wouldn’t move from the thick blankets on their sofa, looking at him with the most pained expressions.

“You look amazing, Eddie, any guy would be lucky to take you home tonight.” Bill said, a gentle blush on his cheeks. Generally, Bill wasn’t the blushing type- spending the majority of his college years happily sleeping with anyone who was interested but there was always something about his best friend that made him feel like a teenager with a crush. Not that he had a crush on Eddie, they’d slept together many times and yet could still treat each other as purely platonic friends.

Eddie shook his head quickly. “I’m not-no- I’m not ready for that yet, I just want to go out and have a few drinks and maybe flirt with some people.”

Bill nodded, watching Eddie’s face closely as if worried that the happiness he saw there may soon fade away to the distress he had grown used to.

“You do whatever you feel comfortable with, Ed.” Bill said, patting Eddie gently on the shoulder. “I’ll probably still be up writing when you get home and you can tell me all about it.”

Eddie smiled at his best friend, knowing that no matter what he needed, Bill was always there for him. Honestly, he didn’t know what he’d have done without Bill in his life, especially in the past six months. He’d never been so grateful to have such a good friend.

-

Eddie hadn’t been to this particular bar. In fact, he wasn’t sure that he’d ever seen this bar before in his life but the bright lights and the subtle rainbow flag outside had caught his attention so he made his way inside. It was busy, bodies bumping into him every time he took a step towards the bar but Eddie didn’t mind; in a way, he almost preferred the anonymity of a crowded place.

Eventually, he found himself leaning on the bar, waiting for the bartender to notice him. Even with his heels, he was shorter than most of the men around him and it had taken him a while to get anywhere close to the front without being shoved out of the way. It made him miss his thick blankets and snuggling with Bill on the couch but he knew that he _needed_ this night out, even if he was right back in his safe space by the end of the night. Maybe he should have made Bill come with him though, everything always seemed much easier when he had his best friend with him.

“What can I get you, cutie?” It was a different bartender than the one Eddie had been trying to flag down. This guy was tall, _much_ taller than Eddie, with wild dark hair that was falling in his eyes in a way that could not be comfortable. Eddie wanted to reach up and push it away, see if the strands were as soft as they looked. Except that would be massively inappropriate and probably bordering on harassment, not to mention that the guy called him ‘cute’, which is something that Eddie just does not tolerate.

“Don’t call me cute.” He said automatically, so used to flipping out at that word. Eddie hated being called cute, just because he was shorter than average and had delicate features did not mean that he should be referred to as cute. Animals were cute, _babies_ were cute, a grown man is definitely not cute. It was so _annoying._

The guy laughed but he looked a little uncertain now and Eddie felt a little bit bad, he was just trying to do his job and make the customers happy. Maybe some other grown men like to be called cute. He had been a little harsh.

“Ugh, I’m sorry.” Eddie said, flapping his hand over the top of the counter in apology. “I’m not an asshole, I swear.”

The guy smiled and it lit his whole face up, changing him from reasonably attractive to one of the most handsome men Eddie had ever seen. _Completely_ not Eddie’s type but still, he has eyes.

“Don’t worry about it.” He smiled again and Eddie felt a strange twinge inside. “Now, can I get you a drink?”

Eddie just stared at the bartender. He couldn’t remember the last time he had been so instantly attracted to someone, especially someone who was so clearly not his type. Eddie went for guys like Bill- not too tall and not crazily attractive, athletic and lean, who took pride in their appearance. Not guys like this one, whose black t-shirt had holes in both sleeves as if it were ten years old and whose hair looked like it had never seen a hairbrush in its life.

“Or did you just push yourself to the front of the bar for a better look at me? It’s happened before, no need to be embarrassed.” The guy said with a smirk, leaning his arm on the counter so that he was closer to Eddie’s face. Eddie felt a blush creep up his neck at being caught staring, he couldn’t help himself, he was _that_ attractive.

“I don’t know what I want.” Eddie said, his voice sounding completely pathetic. Also, he always got the exact same thing from a bar- a G&T with ice and lemon and he had no idea why he just said that. Except, maybe this would lead to a longer conversation and while Eddie hated holding up the other customers, he didn’t want to stop talking to this bartender, it really was pathetic.

The guy raised an eyebrow, his mouth crinkling like he wanted to laugh but he bit them closed, giving Eddie a short nod.

“Is there anything in particular you like? So, I can narrow things down a bit.” He said, running his fingers distractedly along the bar. Eddie watched them enthralled, noticing how long and thin they were and thinking about what else those fingers could do. _Jesus Christ_ , he’d not had sex with anyone other than Bill in three months and this is what happened, he became so horny that he pictured a stranger finger-fucking him in a crowded bar. Eddie felt how red his face was and realised that he’d forgotten to answer again.

“Um, I like things that are sweet.” Eddie said, lifting his eyes once again to make eye contact with the bartender.

The guy chuckled, looking at Eddie with a glint in his eyes. “Of course, you do.”

The two of them stared at each other for a second. Eddie could barely notice the other people around him, knocking into him and towering over him, all Eddie could see was this guy.

“Okay, how about I make you _something sweet_ , something special just for you. On the house.” The guy maintained his eye contact with Eddie and Eddie felt a jolt of something in his spine. This felt like _something._ It was crazy how easily they had slipped into this kind of flirting.

“Oh no, I can pay.” Eddie said, reaching into his pocket to grab his wallet but before he could, a strong hand was grabbing his wrist and moving his hand back up. He looked up and saw the bartender shaking his head, his hair falling even more into his eyes.

“Honestly, let me get it. But can I come to talk to you while you drink it?” The guy said, his eyes keeping a steady hold on Eddie’s gaze. He nodded quickly, he wanted nothing more than that.

“But wait, don’t you have to work?” Eddie gestured at the busy bar and the guy laughed.

“Nah, I know the owner and he lets me have a break whenever I find a cute-no sorry, hot guy.”

And that was how Eddie found himself being guided towards the back of the room by that same strong hand, a slightly pink drink in his other hand.

They reached the back and there were two doors, both of them locked but the guy took out a set of keys and opened the door on the right. Eddie could see quickly that it led to the outside, the darkness of the sky in contrast to the darkness of the bar. The guy looked at Eddie as if asking if that was okay and Eddie found himself nodding before he was suddenly outside.

“Wait there.” The guy said before disappearing back through the same door. Eddie left like he was in a whirlwind but he kind of liked it, he felt something inside of him that he hadn’t felt in a while, not since before that night six months ago when everything had changed for him. This was excitement and adrenaline and lust in a way that thrilled Eddie, making him feel more alive than he has for so long.

The guy came back outside. He thrust something at Eddie, who opened it up to realise that it was a large hoodie. He looked at it quizzically for a moment but it was cold and he wouldn’t have been able to stay outside long in just his silk shirt. The jumper was way too big, coming down to nearly his knees but it was cosy and he kind of liked it, even if it wasn’t as figure-hugging as his outfit.

“I’m Richie, by the way.” The guy- _Richie_ \- said, pulling on a large, battered leather jacket that just seemed to perfectly fit his aesthetic.

“Eddie.” Eddie said in reply.

Richie smiled again, sending warmth through Eddie’s body. “Well, it’s lovely to meet you, Eddie.”

They spent the next two hours outside, just talking in a way that Eddie never had before. He learned that Richie was four years older than him and that he’d dropped out of college after a year because he hated the pressure. Richie was charmingly surprised when Eddie told him that he actually owned his own mechanic business, something he’d wanted to do ever since he was a child. And Eddie found out that the ‘owner’ of the bar Richie had referenced was, in fact, himself, he’d bought it last year with the help of his childhood friend, Stanley and they’d spent the past year renovating it, which is why Eddie had never heard of it before.

“So, I can get you all the drinks I want.” He smiled, his arm resting on the brick wall mere millimetres away from Eddie’s face.

“You’re never going to make a profit if you give free drinks to every guy with a pretty face.” Eddie said with a teasing tone. He felt completely comfortable talking to Richie, like he’d known him his entire life.

Richie looked scandalised. “I do not give free drinks to every pretty guy.” His voice softened until it was slow and quiet, very close to Eddie’s ear, almost too close. “You’re the first guy I’ve ever given a free drink to.”

Eddie snorted, completely disbelievingly. “I bet you say that to them all too.”

Richie shook his head, grabbing onto Eddie’s wrist again, his eyes all dark and intense. “I’m not joking. I saw you and I knew you were _different,_ I had to speak to you, I wasn’t even supposed to be behind the bar tonight.”

It made sense, Eddie hadn’t seen him at all while he was waiting for a drink. Eddie wanted to believe that someone could be so easily attracted to him, that someone would want to get to know him for more than just sex but it seemed so alien to him. Eddie had dated before, of course, but never anything substantial and never with anyone who seemed as attracted to him as Richie did, if the way he looked at him was anything to go from.

“Oh.” Eddie said, swallowing loudly. He could feel a rush of lust and all he wanted was to drag Richie back to his apartment and see for himself what those fingers could do, amongst other things. He just couldn’t do that tonight.

“I hate to be presumptuous here but I live like ten minutes away, we could go warm-up?” Richie said, looking at Eddie with what looked like complete lust in his eyes. Eddie’s resolve nearly cracked down the middle but he knew that it was too soon, as much as he wanted it, it just couldn’t happen.

Eddie shook his head quickly. “I can’t, I’m really sorry but I can’t.” Eddie peeled the hoodie off and passed it back to Richie. “I have to go.” He said before heading off into the dark night.

**_Stanley Uris Makes a Bet_ **

Despite Eddie’s hasty exit, he went back to the bar, again and again, each time spending more and more time with Richie. They talked for hours, pretty much having a standing date every Friday night in the parking lot and Eddie quickly discovered that it was his favourite time of the week. They had such a similar sense of humour, laughing and joking with each other yet still able to have deeply serious conversations at the same time. Every single week, however, their time together ended when Richie would inevitably ask Eddie on a date, or to go home with him and Eddie would run away. They never spoke about why that happened but it intrigued Richie and he wanted to know exactly what was stopping the smaller boy from going out with him.

“I just don’t get it, Stanley.” Richie said, throwing himself into the booth seat, opposite to the one his best friend was sitting on. Stan, used to Richie’s hyperbolic dramatics, merely raised an eyebrow and continued tapping on his phone.

“He clearly likes me, I mean he looks so happy when we’re talking and then the second that I ask him for something more, he closes up.”

Stanley placed his phone on the table, face down as he always does and fixed Richie with an intense look. “Are you sure he’s not like married or something?”

Richie shook his head. “Nope, he’s chronically single and lives with his best friend from like elementary school.”

Stanley took a second to consider. Usually, he had no time for Richie’s histrionics but he’d been talking about Eddie for weeks and after all, Stan did want his best friend to be happy.

“What do you know about this ‘best friend’?”

Richie took out his own phone, covered in scratches and dents, unlike Stanley’s sleek handset. He tapped on it a few times before turning it around to show a photograph to Stan.

“Eddie put this on Instagram for his birthday. He’s definitely cute.” Richie said sadly as Stan examined the photograph, stretching his fingers to zoom in and out.

Stanley let out a long breath with a little whistle in it. “That is one pretty boy.”

Richie snatched his phone back, rolling his eyes. “Thanks for the support, Stanley, really means a lot.”

Stanley laughed, deep and low. “Oh, _honey_ , you know I think you’re beautiful but if Eddie’s living with a guy who looks like _that_ then I’m pretty sure they’re fucking.”

Richie huffed and crossed his arms over his chest defensively. He really liked Eddie and he really wanted to get to know him in a deeper way than he could with their weekly conversations in the parking lot. He wanted to take him to one of the fancy restaurants that Stan liked and treat him like he deserved to be treated, instead of giving him free cocktails in his bar.

“Oh no, baby, don’t be mad at me.” Stanley sighed, reaching across the table to take Richie’s chin in his hand and tilting it up so they could make eye-contact. “I was just trying to make sense of everything.”

Richie rolled his eyes. “I don’t know why I’m taking the advice of a guy who hasn’t been laid in months.”

Stanley chuckled, taking his hands off Richie’s face and examining his cuticles. He was the kind of person who just exuded confidence in a way that you don’t see with many people. He had a way of moving and talking that made it clear to everyone around him that he was in charge.

“I’m choosing to take a break.” Stanley said, raising one of his perfectly manicured eyebrows. “You’re just jealous because I could take home anyone in this bar and you know it.”

Richie scoffed. He always knew that Stanley loved himself but this was a whole new level of confidence. It would be easy for an outsider to witness their conversations and doubt their friendship but Richie knew better; this was all just part of their _thing._ They both knew that at the end of the day they’d be there for each other, no matter what.

“Oh come on, Stanny.” Richie shook his head with a gentle fondness. “You really think you could take home _anyone?_ ”

Stanley surveyed the bar. It was reasonably busy, a usual Friday night crowd and the dance floor was practically thrumming with people. There were a couple of women floating around but it was mostly men since that was their typical clientele and he knew that pretty much anyone in there wouldn’t mind taking him home for a night. He might act it but he wasn’t really that vain, he just knew that guys tended to like his tall, lean physique and his smooth skin and bright eyes. Stanley was pretty certain that he could, in fact, pull any one of the guys in this bar.

He shrugged, taking another sip of the Tempranillo that he made sure they always had stocked just for himself. Richie was always ragging on him to drink something else, said that he drank like a middle-aged businessman but Stanley could never get his father’s words out of his face whenever he had something more age-appropriate. Surely, it didn’t matter that he didn’t spend his Friday nights getting drunk on cheap tequila when he had enough money to make sure he could drink the expensive stuff if that’s what he wanted.

“Fine.” Richie said, with the twinkle in his eye that he only got when he was about to be mischievous, something Stan was used to after 20 years of friendship.

Stan rolled his eyes, about to pick up his phone now to signal the conversation was over but Richie was too quick and reached over to swat his hand away. Stan gave him a _look_ that he had perfected; it was the perfect ‘don’t mess with me’ look but Richie didn’t care. He loved messing with Stanley.

“Ah, ah. I think it’s time for a _challenge._ ” Richie said, his voice turning into a song on the last word.

Richie’s challenges were something he’d been doing since they were kids and Stanley had never agreed to one of them. He thought he’d get through the rest of his life never having to agree to one but when they were in their final year of high school, they’d gotten into a bad argument and Stan had said some things that he didn’t mean and he’d watched as his best friend had crumbled into sadness. He’d never felt so guilty in his life and he’d done some _bad_ things so he promised Richie that he’d do whatever challenges he wanted, even if they were stupid or risky- he just wanted his best friend back.

“That guy, over by the bar.” Richie waggled a finger in the direction of the bar, where there were roughly fifty guys whom he could mean.

Stanley looked at him blankly.

“Jeez, I thought I was the blind one. I mean the one who looks a bit like Ben, if Ben weren’t the straightest looking dude you ever saw.”

Stanley instantly knew who he meant. Ben was his driver, a lovely guy who they’d known since high school when he started dating their friend, Bev. He was so gentle and sweet but he’d fallen into a hole when his mother had got sick a few years ago. Bev had been the one to call him in floods of tears, telling him that Ben had been trying to get more money so that he could afford her healthcare but he’d ended up working for some bad people and he was in trouble. Stanley didn’t even think twice of paying off Ben’s debt and giving him a safe job with lots of benefits and he really liked having another one of his friends around him. He trusted Ben and Bev and he’d never regretted bringing them into the fold of his company.

“And, what’s the bet- I have to go back to place?” Stanley asked, thinking about it. In terms of a challenge, it wasn’t that bad. Richie had once made him eat a sandwich filled with ants; he’d done that so he definitely could do this.

“Goodness gracious, Stanley.” Richie said, putting on a high voice and sounding affronted. “I was only going to make you flirt with him a bit.”

Stanley grinned and drained his wine, before standing up and pocketing his phone. He gave Richie a quick wink before he was off, walking towards the bar. It didn’t take long for the guy beside him to notice him and he quickly became aware of a pair of hands gripping at his waist. _Ah._ He was one of those guys. Stan turned around and smiled at the guy, even though he really wanted to tell him to take his hands off but he wasn’t about to lose this challenge for his own comfort.

“Hey, gorgeous.” The guy said. He had a nice smile and people with nice smiles tended to be good guys and anyway, they normally only got good people in the bar since word-of-mouth was their preferred method of marketing. “Can I get you a drink?”

Now, obviously, since Stanley owned the bar, he should be getting this guy a drink but this wasn’t about that. This was the true bar hook-up experience and for that, he needed to be bought a drink.

“Sure. But I only like bitters.” Stan said, completely lying. Well, maybe not completely- he did prefer bitters to anything other than red wine but it was also a statement of his personality, he could come across quite bitter and sour to people he didn’t know.

The man raised an eyebrow at him and turned to the bar, where one of his bartenders was waiting. They’d seen him approach and had come straight away, not wanting to keep their boss waiting but this guy must have just thought he was lucky.

“I’ll take a vodka coke and a Campari soda, please.” The guy said and the bartender began working, flitting a confused look to Stan, who just shrugged.

Their drinks came and Stanley took a sip, relishing in the refreshing taste. It reminded him of the trip he, Rich and Bev had taken to Italy after their high-school graduation, courtesy of his father. They’d spent a month travelling around the country, eating nice food and getting drunk. Maybe if he organised everything well, they could take another trip- maybe to France this time, or Greece. Somewhere where they could gorge on fresh vegetables and wine. That would be nice but he knew it was a pipe-dream, everything could go wrong in a moment if he stepped away from the wheel.

“You come here often?” The guy asked and Stanley had to bite back a laugh. What a clichéd line.

Stanley hummed a bit before answering. “Often enough.”

A bar stool had become free behind him so Stan climbed up, kicking his feet up and down where they rested high off the ground. The guy leaned in a bit more now that there was more room, one of his arms resting on the bar and the other on Stanley’s thigh.

“Well, this is my first time.” The guy grinned. “I’m Dylan by the way.”

Stanley smiled serenely at Dylan, the way he knew guys liked. “Sam.”

Stanley hated telling people his name, especially when he didn’t know that he could trust them. All it could take was telling the wrong person his name and they could use that to make his life absolute hell. He and his late father had worked too hard to build their reputation, to get all those people on their side that he couldn’t let one bad decision ruin everything. It was why he didn’t date and he definitely didn’t take people back to his house or into his office. His life and his company was a giant house of cards and he couldn’t let someone blow it down.

He did go home with Dylan that night after a few more drinks, a decision he regretted in the morning when he was calling Ben from the lobby of a random apartment building with a banging in his head and an unmistakable ache when he sat down.

Mike was in the backseat when he got into Ben’s car. Mike was his bodyguard, a guy he’d hired after a risky situation his first year in charge when Richie had finally begged him to hire someone because _he couldn’t lose him._ Mike was a sweetie and he seemed to really enjoy his job, easily becoming one of Stanley’s closest friends but he also took his job seriously and wasn’t afraid to scold him when he broke one of his own rules.

“Ugh, you don’t need to say it.” Stanley said, flopping into the seat beside Mike with his eyes tightly closed.

Mike laughed and reached over to rub his back in a gentle manner. He really loved Mike.

“As much as I’d love to say that the hangover is helping you to learn your lesson, you know that it’s my job to tell you how stupid you were, Stanley.” Mike said, his voice gentle but with an edge. He was right though, Stan paid him to make sure he didn’t end up dead but there was nothing he could do when he snuck out of bars with random guys.

Stan curled his body more into a ball. There was a pause and then Mike reached across him to put his seatbelt over him, leaving a gentle kiss on his head. Mike knew, the way he always seemed to know everything, that Stanley needed that small piece of gentle reassurance- they were purely platonic but Mike would be the first person he’d call when he could hear his father’s voice in his head telling him how much of a disappointment he was. If his father was around to see who Stanley had ended up being, he just knew that he would have hated him and that was the harsh reality that he had to live with.

“Next time that you want to do that, you _ring me_ and I will go get you a hotel room or something.” Mike said, his voice even gentler now.

Sometimes, when Stanley was alone and he was tired, he wished that he could make himself fall in love with Mike Hanlon. He was everything Stanley needed in a boyfriend- he was comfortable and protective and loved with his entire heart but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t see him as anything other than a friend. He knew that Mike would love him back in a second but he just couldn’t do it. Maybe it was because he knew that he’d never be able to have a real relationship and he’d just end up breaking Mike’s heart. Mike was too sweet for that.

“You want me to get Rich?” Mike sounded worried now, his hand coming to rest on Stanley’s shoulders.

Stan shook his head. Richie was a _bitch_ if someone woke him up before 10 AM but he’d be over like a shot if he knew that Stanley was having a bad time. Stan didn’t know how he’d managed to end up with such good friends but he was grateful for them; he didn’t know what he’d do without his close team.

“Okay, babe.” Mike said, stroking gentle circles on his skin to try and calm him. “Why don’t we get you home and I’ll make you a nice cup of chamomile and you can have a nap. Ben said you don’t have any meetings before 2.”

The tea helped soothe his slightly frazzled nerves and the nap took away the rest of his hangover. He made Mike and Ben swear that they wouldn’t tell Richie about how much of a mess he was that morning because he knew that he’d be upset if he knew that his challenge had caused Stan’s mini-breakdown. Richie was his family like that, he just wanted the best for Stanley.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bill couldn’t remember the last time that he’d had a day off. For a little over minimum wage, Bill Denbrough worked 56 hours a week in a coffee shop that was a ten-minute walk from his apartment. Every day, he got up, rushed into work and dealt with fussy moms and cleaned up after kids and tried not to stab middle-aged women when they asked him for a refund because their skim latte with sugar-free caramel was too cold.   
> But today was Eddie’s 23rd birthday and they’d made the promise, back when they moved into this tiny apartment that birthdays would always be sacred so he’d done the unthinkable and taken a day off. 
> 
> or
> 
> Bill and Eddie go to Richie and Stanley's bar. Bill meets the guy he's been obsessed with for months.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I'm writing this, the plan I made for this is changing because I'm not really a planner and my stories just evolve as I go. This might mean that my updates will be quite slow. I'm also writing a few other fics at the same time so give those a read if you want. 
> 
> Also, I just wanted to make it clear that for this fic I HC Stanley as being a huge softie under a rock-hard exterior so if he ever comes across like he's being cold-hearted or mean because a certain chapter isn't in his perspective, just remember that he's putting it on due to growing up with his father. 
> 
> Thanks to everyone for reading. Please leave any comments about what you liked or disliked from this chapter. Kudos is always appreciated too. I love you all!

**_Bill Denbrough Takes a Break_ **

Bill couldn’t remember the last time that he’d had a day off. For a little over minimum wage, Bill Denbrough worked 56 hours a week in a coffee shop that was a ten-minute walk from his apartment. Every day, he got up, rushed into work and dealt with fussy moms and cleaned up after kids and tried not to stab middle-aged women when they asked him for a refund because their skim latte with sugar-free caramel was too cold. At the end of the month when his payslip came in, he would go straight to the bank and transfer half to Eddie so he could pay rent and then split the remaining half into a small amount and a large amount. Without exception, the larger amount of money would go to his parents for his younger brother, Georgie.

When Georgie was 5, six years ago, he’d been in a terrible accident. Bill had been seventeen and completely ready to move away to college and start his new life and he hated that he was spending the summer before his senior year babysitting his baby brother. Eddie had come over a lot but even he’d gotten a bit annoyed at the sheer amount of time that Bill had to spend watching Georgie. They hadn’t meant it, had only taken their eyes off him for five minutes while they watched a video and by the time it had finished, Georgie was gone. Both of them had rushed outside to find a crowd of people around a tiny body in the middle of the road, not two houses away. He’d only been outside for five minutes but five minutes was enough for a truck to come by and the driver to not notice the small boy in the lemon yellow t-shirt until it was too late and the body was a bump in the road. Bill’s one mistake had cost his family their entire life savings, and worse of all, his little brother one of his arms.

So, every month, Bill sent a good chunk of his wages to his parents. They were saving up to get Georgie a prosthetic arm, one of the good ones that reacted to muscle movement and meant that he could act like a normal kid. They’d barely scraped the surface of what they needed and it left Bill with barely enough money to eat but he didn’t care, he’d take a few days a month of 99cent ramen if it meant Georgie could get his life back.

But today was Eddie’s 23rd birthday and they’d made the promise, back when they moved into this tiny apartment that birthdays would always be sacred so he’d done the unthinkable and taken a day off. No alarm blared to remind him to wake up and take a shower, otherwise, he’d get another warning from his manager about ‘inappropriate hygiene’, which he thought was really fucking annoying considering that he basically lived in the café. Instead, he woke up a reasonable time and they had a leisurely breakfast of waffles- the ones that he always made for Georgie when he was having a bad day.

He’d saved some money the past couple of months by agreeing to more early mornings at the coffee shop so that he could afford to buy Eddie a nice present. Eddie’s life had been so terrible the past year and Bill had seen how sad his best friend was so he just wanted to be able to get him something to make him smile. In the end, he’d begged a college friend who worked in a department store to let him borrow his staff discount so he could get Eddie a new pair of heels since his old favourites had been ruined _that night._ These were dark green, one of his favourite colours and Eddie loved them, strutting around the apartment in them all day with a grin on his face. It was the least Bill could do.

They were going out that night, to that guy, Richie’s bar. When Eddie had come home all excited about having met a guy, Bill felt protective. Eddie was vulnerable, especially now and he didn’t want some random bar owner to take advantage but if he made Eddie happy then that was a different story. Bill really just wanted Eddie to be happy; he deserved so much.

“So, are you going to go home with Richie tonight?” Bill asked, waggling his eyebrows at Eddie as he finished buttoning up his shirt.

Eddie stopped brushing his hair in their living room mirror to look at him with a terrified expression.

“Do you think he’s going to expect me to because I’m spending my birthday in his bar? Is this like crossing a line?” Eddie sounded panicked like the thought had never crossed his mind.

Bill didn’t really know the answer, he didn’t know much about this Richie guy but if Eddie had spent this long talking to him and still liked him then he must be at least nice. Surely, he wasn’t going to expect Eddie to sleep with him because they were going to his bar for his birthday. The guy had offered to give him a few drinks but he did that every time Eddie went there anyway so this shouldn’t mean anything more really.

“He’d be a dick if he did, Ed.” Bill gave him a gentle smile. “Don’t worry about it, we can leave whenever you want.”

The bar wasn’t really what Bill was expecting at all. When Bill let himself have a small break and went out to drink, he went to cheap places where he could get pitchers of beer for $3 and everyone sat around chilling and talking, maybe playing a game of pool or darts. This was definitely more Eddie’s speed than his with the thriving dance floor and the sophisticated cocktail area at the back with tall booths and sharply dressed people flitting around.

“I’m going to go find, Rich.” Eddie said, bouncing on the balls of his toes like he was excited. “I’ll get you a drink and come find you, yeah? Maybe you’ll even find your soul-mate.” He laughed.

With that he was gone, floating over towards the bar through the crowd of people. Bill knew he was unlikely to see Eddie again for at least an hour, he tended to go missing when they went out to these types of bars. Bill didn’t blame Eddie for it; it was his birthday and he’d rather him have a good time than have to babysit him.

Bill wondered around for a while, taking in the sights. A few men came up to him and he talked to them for a while but they weren’t really his type. Bill’s problem was that he wasn’t generally attracted to the type of guy who liked him; it was easier when he wanted to sleep with a woman because the ones he liked also liked him back but with men, it was a whole different game. Bill’s type of guy was similar to himself, which was an issue because the guys who approached him were usually older and just wanted him to play a part in their ‘younger guy’ fantasies, something Bill definitely didn’t want.

The thing was, Bill was a writer and therefore, he was kind of a romantic. Bill believed that somewhere out there was the perfect person for him and all he had to do was just meet them but he barely ever had time to go out and meet someone. Last year, he’d been walking in the park near his apartment on his half-hour lunch break and walking in the opposite direction was the person that Bill decided was his soulmate. It was stupid really, they’d only made eye-contact for like two seconds but Bill had this guy’s face ingrained in his mind- soft features with the brightest eyes that Bill had ever seen, that seemed to twinkle at him like _he felt it too._ Bill had turned around to try and see any more distinguishing features but all he’d seen were dark blonde curls bouncing as he walked away and well-fitting clothes that seemed to scream _expensive_. He was the most beautiful person Bill had ever seen and Bill looked everywhere he went to try and see him again but he’d never been so lucky and even if he did, it was unlikely that someone like _him_ would be interested in Bill.

Bill spent a half-hour walking around the bar, trying to see if he could see Eddie and trying to ignore the way his eyes drifted every time he saw a lock of dark blonde curls. He was being stupid to get so hung up on someone he’d never even talked to and that guy wasn’t going to be _here_ ; he was probably married and was at home with his wife and dog and 2.5 kids. Still, Bill couldn’t get that twinkle out of his mind as he pushed past the crowd of people to try and get to the emptier back of the bar where it was quieter. Maybe he could just find a table and order some cocktails and try not to think about how many extra shifts he’d have to pick up to afford food for the next month.

Unluckily, there were no tables free and Bill was about to admit defeat when he saw something familiar from the last table before the end of the room, where there were two heavy-duty doors. It was an image that had been cemented in Bill’s mind since that day in the park last year. Bill couldn’t believe his luck so he stepped a bit further to try and distinguish whether this was actually _him_ and not just someone with very similar hair. He had to walk a bit further until eventually, he was stood right next to the guy in question, _who turned towards him._

“I’m busy.” The guy said, holding up his phone as if to show Bill he was doing something and turning back towards the table. But not before Bill could get a good look at his face and confirm that this was indeed the very person he’d been obsessing about for the last year.

Bill would normally leave at this point but this was not an ordinary situation, this was _him_ and Bill thought that he should at least give it one more chance.

“Are you sure? I just can’t bear the thought of someone as beautiful as you being all alone.” It was such a _line_ but Bill couldn’t help it, he’d never been very good at flirting and he couldn’t just let this guy go.

The guy snorted and turned back to Bill. “I said…” He started off the same way as before but he faltered, his face changing from irritated to something that looked a lot like amused.

“Actually, I am so sorry, that was really rude.” The guy smiled at Bill and Bill felt like he was dying. He couldn’t believe he was actually talking to the person he _swore_ was his soulmate. Bill’s inner romantic was screaming with excitement.

“It’s f-fine.” Bill said with the stutter that had cursed his childhood and only came out when he felt extreme emotion or nervousness like he did right now. He hated himself for the way he sounded like a child but the guy’s expression didn’t even falter.

“Why don’t you take a seat? Then you can tell me all about how beautiful I am.” The guy rested his face on his hands and smiled at Bill, making him want to melt. The twinkle was back in his eyes and _God_ , Bill was so happy.

Bill took the seat opposite his dream guy, still feeling like this couldn’t quite be real. The way he’d seen Bill’s face and immediately dropped his ‘busy’ act like maybe he even remembered Bill too. It was crazy.

“I’m B-b-b-Bill, b-by the way.” Bill ended up spluttering, feeling his face go the unattractive red colour it always did when he was struggling to speak. _Fuck._ Of course, this had to happen now.

The guy looked at him with a gentle expression, it could have even been sympathy. Whatever it was, it was extremely adorable.

“Are you okay, Bill?” He asked.

Bill nodded fervently. “Yes, I’m s-sorry. It’s just when I’m nervous.” He spoke slowly trying to circumvent the stutter. It worked for the most part, his voice just catching on the hardest sounds.

The guy grinned then, all straight white teeth and crinkled eyes- Bill could have _swooned._

“Well, I’m Stanley and you certainly have nothing to be nervous about, you’re doing just fine.” Stanley winked, before raising his hand in the air to attract one of the cocktail servers. “I’m thinking a drink, yes?”

Bill’s stomach sank. He had about $10 in his wallet and that was unlikely to be able to buy two drinks; he also had his credit card but he wasn’t actually sure how much was on that and he didn’t want to risk his card being declined in front of Stanley. That wasn’t the way to make a first impression. And Bill _really_ wanted to make a good first impression.

Of course, the server arrived before Bill had finished having the internal argument with himself- he guessed that he’d just have to try and put it on his card and hope for the best.

“I think I’ll have a Negroni.” Stanley smiled at the server before turning to Bill. “Bill?”

Bill hadn’t had a cocktail since he used to take his ex-girlfriend to Chili’s for date night because he couldn’t afford anything more expensive and they used to have 2-4-1 Strawberry Margaritas but this didn’t feel like the kind of place where you could order that. Bill felt so out-of-place; if Stanley wanted the kind of guy who had a signature cocktail order then maybe he _wasn’t_ the right person for Bill- that stung a bit.

Bill was just about to admit that he had no idea what he wanted when Stanley swooped in.

“Actually, I’ve changed my mind- I’ll have a large beer please, any kind.” Stanley gave Bill another smile, which seemed to be encouraging. “You want the same?”

Bill nodded appreciatively. He couldn’t believe Stanley had done that for him, saving him from making an embarrassing mess of himself. It was _so_ sweet, Bill’s elation grew. The server smiled tightly before leaving to get them their drinks and they were alone again.

Stanley’s smile slipped off his face and he gave Bill a solemn look.

“I have to admit something.”

Bill nodded eagerly; maybe he really had recognised him from last year.

“You’re Eddie’s friend, right? The one he lives with?”

Bill was confused; this wasn’t going where he thought it would go. He was slightly disappointed but he didn’t let it show on his face.

“Yeah, we’ve been friends like our entire lives.”

“Well, I’m Richie’s friend- I’m guessing he’s talked about Rich. And we both own this place. I just wanted to be upfront about that.”

Of course, Eddie had told him about Richie, the guy was obsessed with him. He knew that Richie owned the bar too, along with his childhood friend who was apparently super-rich because of some company his father had left to him when he died. And then in the back of his mind, Bill remembered two of his elderly regular customers talking about this young man in the city who was on like some 30 under 30 list and about whether he was single or not so they could try and set up their granddaughters. He’d never connected that guy to Richie’s friend but here they both were and _they had the same first name._

“Oh my God, you’re Stanley Uris.” Bill breathed out, looking absolutely terrified.

Stanley giggled, a sound that was so cute it made Bill’s hair stand on end slightly but Bill just stared at him slack-jawed. He couldn’t believe he thought he had a chance with a _millionaire._

“Yeah, I kind of am.”

Bill honestly didn’t know what to do. Part of him wanted to run as fast as he could away from this table because this was only going to end badly. Bill earned $10 an hour at some tiny coffee shop; Stanley could easily afford to buy said coffee shop- there was no way they would have anything in common.

“Oh shit, have I made you uncomfortable?” Stanley leaned forward, looking at Bill with concern.

Yeah, actually, Bill was feeling kind of uncomfortable now. But Bill was honest to a fault so he decided to open up and actually answer the question rather than run away like he wanted to. He didn’t want to make things awkward for Eddie after all.

“I have like t-ten dollars in my pocket, I d-don’t even think I can afford my drink.” Bill said hopelessly, not even caring about how shaky his voice sounded. He didn’t even know what was happening; he’d literally just been attempting to flirt with someone and now he discussing his state of employment. They were only strangers meeting in a bar after all.

Stanley sighed, looking a little bit sad.

“I’m sorry, I’ve made this really awkward fast. I’m just- I’m not very good at this; I don’t ever get to talk to guys who are actually my type and I remember seeing you on Eddie’s Instagram and thinking that you were really attractive and then you were here and _flirting_ with me- I’m sorry, I just got too excited.”

Bill thought this was how he was going to die. No way had _Stanley Uris_ seen his picture and thought he was attractive and was apologising to him for being awkward. He was _excited_ to meet Bill; how was this even possible? This was the most surreal moment of Bill’s life.

Then suddenly there was a hand on top of his on the table with extremely soft skin and Bill felt even more like he was going to die.

“How about we pretend that you just sat down and we go again? See if we can actually manage to flirt this time?” Stanley said, his voice soft and _ugh_ , Bill really liked him. Bill didn’t even know that you could like people this quickly but he really liked Stanley.

“Okay.”

And they stayed there at their little table as their drinks came, which Stanley discreetly put on his tab, not wanting Bill to feel any more uncomfortable. They talked about any things they could think of- Bill talked about Georgie and how he was his favourite person in the world and Stanley talked about growing up with Richie and the crazy shit he made them do. Bill kind of forgot who he was talking to and that he was supposed to feel nervous and got more into the conversation, both of them ordering more drinks and laughing at each other’s cheesy jokes and lines. They actually got on really well, which made Bill feel kind of proud. They barely even noticed the crowd in the bar dwindling as it approached closing time.

“Oh,” Bill said, once he looked up to see that they were the only people still sat at a table. “I should probably find Eddie and head home; I’m opening tomorrow.”

The two of them stared at each other for a moment, Bill becoming increasingly aware of the look in Stanley’s eyes and the way his hand was resting gently on his thigh.

“Or?” The hand crept higher and Bill could feel his heart beating faster.

“Definitely or.” Bill said, surging forward to press his lips against Stanley’s.

-

Bill woke up in a bed that definitely wasn’t his own. His arm was wrapped around a warm, naked body and his head hurt slightly the way it always did when he’d had a couple of drinks. Curly hair tickled his nose when he tried to move and the entire night before rushed back to him. He’d met his _dream guy_ that he’d been fantasising about for a year and it was _Stanley Uris_ and he’d gone back to his house and they’d had sex- quite possibly the greatest sex of his life.

Luckily, Bill had set his morning alarm before he’d gone out, otherwise he’d easily have missed his early shift. Also luckily, Stanley didn’t stir as he extracted his arms. He was sad to just have to leave but he didn’t want to wake him up because he looked so adorable asleep, his hair flopping in his eyes and the blanket almost up to his nose.

Bill crept out of the room, his jeans and his shirt unbuttoned. He stepped out into the corridor and padded down the carpeted hall until he reached the kitchen. He was sure he’d left his shoes by the front door, the house seemed like the kind of place where you should do that. It was also, he was sure, the nicest house he’d ever stepped foot in with its high ceilings and spacious rooms.

“Ah, Bill right?” A voice shocked Bill out of his thoughts and he looked up to find a guy sat at the breakfast bar. He was a dark, muscular guy and had half a grapefruit in front of him on a plate and regarded Bill with a tired smile.

“Yes?”

Bill was confused. Normally, he’d assume this guy was some kind of lodger but there was no-way Stanley needed someone to pay half of his bills and also, why would he know Bill’s name?

“There’s a car out front for you. It’ll take you anywhere you need to go.” The guy’s smile was still evident but the close Bill got, the more forced it seemed to be.

Oh. Bill had thought he was going to have to call an Uber, which was definitely more money than he could afford this month but once again, Stanley had saved him. He’d been planning to leave a note with his phone number but with this guy here, he felt too awkward to go rooting around the kitchen to find a pen and some paper.

“Th-thanks.” Bill said, awkwardly buttoning the rest of his shirt. “Can I-“

The guy cut him off before he could finish his sentence. “Stanley doesn’t give his number out to _hook-ups.”_

Bill deflated. _Ah._ Of course, someone like Stanley Uris wasn’t actually interested in him. He was just a hook-up, probably one of many if the way the guy was looking at him meant anything. Maybe this guy was Stanley’s boyfriend and they had some kind of twisted open relationship thing that clearly, this guy wasn’t into because he was looking at Bill like he wanted him to die.

“Oh, right. I guess I’ll be going then.” Bill said, swallowing the lump in this throat. He grabbed his shoes from the floor with one hand and opened the door with the other; he could put them on in the car, he just needed to leave.

**_Stanley Uris Gets Conflicted_ **

Stanley woke up and was surprised to find no arm slung over his body. He knew that he’d gone asleep with Bill holding him like a koala but there was no evidence he’d ever been here now, no clothes on the floor or phone on the nightstand. He hadn’t expected Bill to be the type of guy to sneak out in the middle of the night; that definitely hurt a bit.

“Bill?” Stanley called, heading out into the main part of the house, just in case he was still around somewhere.

Instead, he found Mike at the breakfast bar with his arms crossed and a raised eyebrow.

“Did you see Bill?” He asked, somehow feeling a little bit small. He wanted to believe that Bill had just gone to work this morning but he was worried that he’d waited until Stanley was asleep and crept out last night.

Mike nodded. “I got him a car about half an hour ago.”

Oh, thank _God_. He had said he was opening up at his job this morning so that would make sense.

“Did he leave me a note or something?” Stanley said, looking around the countertops in search of such a note.

“Nope.” Mike’s voice was a little sharper than Stanley had ever thought he’d heard it. “Seemed in a bit of rush to get out of here.”

Stanley shrugged, the guy did have work. He was probably just stressed about getting across town at this time in the morning.

“I’ll just ask Richie to ask Eddie for his number.” Stanley said, more to himself than anything, picking up an apple and taking a bite.

Mike remained silent, watching Stanley with a weird expression on his face. Stanley felt weirdly exposed under his gaze, it was strange and slightly uncomfortable.

“What’s up with you?” Stanley asked, chewing his apple carefully.

There was a pause where Mike was clearly thinking about what he was going to say. A frustrated look came across his face and he sighed deeply. Stanley felt his back go up; this was _very_ unlike Mike.

“You brought a guy _home_. You never do that.” Mike’s tone was almost accusatory. Stanley instinctively took a step back.

Stanley smiled, the memory of Bill still fresh in his mind- all gentle nervousness and authentic personality. He wasn’t like the other people Stanley slept with, the ones he didn’t even tell his real name to. Bill was someone he thought he might like to get to know further, to take on dates and then back to his house. It was stupid how much he liked Bill after just one night but he knew it was the truth.

“I never found someone I wanted to before.”

Mike scoffed. “And _he_ was the right guy?”

Stanley stared at Mike in utter disbelief. He’d never heard Mike sound so cold, so mean and it was startling. Where was his friend who’d helped him through his struggles with a calm presence and firm hugs? This wasn’t right.

“I really like him; he was very sweet and honestly, Mike, it’s not really any of your business.” Stanley suddenly felt much too underdressed in just the thin robe he’d thrown on when he’d left his bedroom.

Mike laughed but it was stilted and sounded like it got stuck in his throat. “But actually, Stanley, it is my business since you literally hired me for your personal protection. I can’t protect you personally when you’re inviting random guys over to your house.”

“It was just Bill.” Stanley said quietly. He didn’t like the way Mike was standing over him now; he felt a little bit small. It felt like he did when his father was shouting at him and he’d always hated that.

“When Richie told me that you’d left the bar with him, I got Bev to run an express background check. The guy is flat broke, Stanley, he could have robbed you blind. Probably would have done if I wasn’t here this morning.”

He was wrong, Bill would never have robbed him. Bill was a good guy; he was sweet and he was only broke because he sent all his money to his brother. And Eddie had definitely mentioned Bill having a little brother so it wasn’t like he was just lying to get Stanley’s sympathy. And Stanley was getting sick of Mike’s attitude- he was his employee and this was no way to speak to your boss.

“Take the day off, Mike.” Stanley said flatly. “I’ve got a day full of meetings at the office with Rich and Bev so I’ll be fine. Only come back tomorrow if you’re going to act like a proper employee.”

Mike’s face closed up and there was a brief flash of anger in his eyes. His jaw was tense as he nodded woodenly.

“Whatever you want, _Mr Uris._ ”

-

Richie walked in barely an hour later to find Stanley in exactly the same position, sat at his kitchen table with his head in his hands and his hair a huge mess on his head. Growing up with Stanley, Richie had seen him in every stage of the day but it had been years since he’d seen Stanley anything other than fully dressed with his hair brushed to its usual smoothness.

“Woah, looks like someone had a good night.” Richie laughed, ruffling the already messed up curls on Stan’s head.

Stanley lifted his head to look at his best friend, his eyes red like he’d been crying. That was unusual; Richie didn’t think Stan had actually cried since his father had died four years ago.

“Shit, shit, are you okay?” Richie wrapped his long arms around Stanley, pulling his head into his stomach in the closest thing they could get to a hug in their current positions. Stan shook his head, pushing it further into Richie’s shirt.

“Where’s Mikey? Isn’t he normally here in the mornings?” Richie looked around the room like he was half-expecting Mike to jump out from behind one of the large couches.

Stanley pulled away from Richie, who took the seat opposite him at the table, looking at him with pure concern. _God,_ what would he do without Richie?

“I think Mike’s in love with me.”

Richie laughed but it was choked out like he wasn’t expecting what Stan said. He stared at him in shock for a moment.

“I mean, Stanny, you know I think you’re the most special guy on the planet but Mikey’s a professional- he wouldn’t do that.” Richie looked conflicted, his eyes all big and confused.

“Bill stayed over last night; we talked for hours in the bar and he was honestly so sweet so I brought him back here-“

Richie cut him off with a whoop. “Woo! At least one of us got some Vitamin D last night.”

Stanley ignored him with a pointed stare and continued his story, telling him exactly what Mike had said and the way he acted like a completely different person to the one that Stan had thought he knew. Richie listened intently the rest of the time, his face varying from shock to horror at certain points in the story.

“That’s so fucked up.” Richie shook his head, his hair flopping around like a dog.

When they were kids, Stan used to call Richie his dog because of the way he bounded around with excess energy and his shaggy hair. This was just before his father tried to ban him from seeing Richie, saying that he wasn’t an appropriate friend for someone like Stanley. Stanley had gotten so upset that he’d ran away, filling a backpack with his things and running to the Tozier house where Maggie and Wentworth had given him Hot Chocolate and cookies. They’d let him stay there for a night before calling his father but they’d promised him that he’d always have a place in their home whenever he needed it. He stayed there often when his father was in particularly bad moods but the one thing he’d never done was stop Stanley from seeing Richie again.

Stan shrugged; most of his anger and sadness had dissipated now that Richie was here. There was something about Richie that just made him want to smile.

“I guess I’ve got to start looking for someone to take his job.” Stan said sadly, feeling like shit for even considering. “We could put him somewhere else in the company.”

Richie scoffed loudly. “Yeah, somewhere far away from you. Jesus, Stan, imagine if the person who was supposed to protect you ended up hurting you.”

Stan rolled his eyes. “He wouldn’t hurt me, I just don’t hire him for his opinion on who I’m seeing. And I really like Bill- I’m thinking of asking him out again.”

Richie screeched loudly, sounding like some kind of bird. “Stanley Uris, bachelor extraordinaire, finally considering settling down at the old, old age of 27.”

“Beep-beep, Richard. I’m asking him on a date, not for his hand in marriage.” Stanley said but he had a smile on his face now that he was thinking about Bill again. “I’m guessing Eddie didn’t make an appearance in your bed last night.”

Richie pouted like a child. “Still no luck on that front but one day, he will admit that he’s hopelessly in love with me and then we’ll elope and adopt hoards of babies and watch each other grow old.” He sighed dreamily.

“Yeah, you’re definitely not creepy at all.” Stanley laughed, watching his best friend with a fond smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed and please leave any comments or kudos, they really help my writing process.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “I run a different business here than the one we tell people we do. I won’t go into specifics now; there’ll be time for that later but let’s just say that most of what we do isn’t exactly legal."
> 
> Eddie gets recruited by Stanley, we learn about his past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I spent a long time on this but no matter how much I added to it, it always seems rushed so I'm just going to publish this and move on to the next chapter. 
> 
> Thanks for reading and please leave any comments or kudos that you want to share with me.

**_Richie Tozier Learns the Truth_ **

When Eddie Kaspbrak was eighteen his mother died. She’d been the bane of his existence since the day he was born, force-feeding him pills and medications that were supposed to be ‘to help him’ but really they accomplished nothing. Eddie had no major illness, suffering only from seasonal allergies and slight lactose intolerance. He’d figured this out when he was fourteen and ate a peanut butter sandwich at Bill’s house and hadn’t keeled over in immediate death like his mother made it sound like he would. In fact, he’d rather enjoyed the sandwich and ate another one.

Eddie’s father had died from lung cancer many years before, forcing his only child to watch as his body slowly gave out. Eddie was only four and he hadn’t really understood at first- he thought that he was just sick and that sick people went to the hospital to get better but Frank never came home. His mother refused to talk about it, removing every photograph of her husband from their house and turning into a crazed version of the woman she was before, keeping Eddie from experiencing any of the things that a child should. Eddie grew up hating his mother, wanting more than anything to escape her clutches and get away.

So, it was almost a miracle when six months before he was due to graduate high-school, Sonia Kaspbrak fell down the stairs in her own house and died from her injuries. Eddie was the one who found her, coming home from Bill’s house to find his mother’s unconscious body beside his front door. He’d called an ambulance but she was dead before it arrived. Two weeks later and everything she’d owned and all the money his father had left when he died was all transferred to Eddie’s possession- easily enough money to pay for college and to get away from his home-town. He’d sold their house and moved in with Bill’s parents for those last six months until both he and Bill went away to college, becoming roommates and then moving into their first apartment together.

Eddie had tried to give the rest of his money to the Denbrough’s for Georgie and to thank them for their kindness over the years but they’d refused it, saying that he needed to use it for what his father intended. He’d considered it for a while, completing the first year of his bachelor’s degree in business before realising what he really wanted to do with his life. Like his father before him, he’d always been interested in cars so he decided to change his major to mechanical engineering, graduating a year early with honours. By the time he was 22, he’d decided to use the rest of his money to open his own mechanic’s shop but even with all of the money that he’d inherited from his parents, he still needed significant outside investment. Luckily, a local businessman he’d talked to had taken an interest in his business and offered a yearly investment, allowing Eddie to start the business of his dreams and he’d been able to hire other mechanics.

It had been a hard year for Eddie but his business was doing well. He’d thought it was all going to come crashing down after _the incident_ but he’d pushed past his inner pain to keep his business afloat. Bill had helped, of course, even doing some admin for Eddie late at night when he wasn’t working so that Eddie could get a good night’s sleep because they both knew about the nightmares that were haunting him. But now, everything was back to the way it should be and Eddie was doing just fine, loving his job, his apartment and his Friday nights getting to know Richie.

He and Richie had exchanged phone numbers a couple of weeks ago and they’d been texting ever since. Eddie knew that he close to finally letting Richie in and agreeing to go on a date with him. He really liked the guy and he knew that Richie liked him back, he’d proved that time and time again by listening to Eddie’s stories and never pressuring him. 

That day, Eddie was at work. He’d just finished up fixing a car for a really fussy client who was always complaining that he was too expensive; she reminded him of his mother in a way and it made him feel a bit sick. The woman had just finished paying when his phone began ringing. Eddie answered, not even looking at the Caller ID before he spoke.

“Hello?”

“Good afternoon, Edward.” The booming voice of his investor, Ernest Montgomery surprised Eddie. He wished he’d looked at the Caller ID now so that he could have avoided this phone call.

“Hey, Ernie. How’s it going?” Eddie said, rolling his eyes as he flipped through his latest invoices. Ernie did this quite often, called him out of boredom and then spent hours regaling his latest golf victories while Eddie pretended to be listening.

“Great.” Ernie shouted, probably due to his lack of hearing and the fact that he must be at least 90 years old. “But I’m afraid I have some bad news.”

Eddie rolled his eyes again. The last time Ernie told him he had bad news it was because he’d decided to cancel his upcoming vacation to Florida and thought that this had anything to do with Eddie, who literally had never been on a vacation in his life.

“Yeah, what’s up?”

“Well, Eddie, I’m sure you are aware that I am, in fact, an old man now.” Ernie said, his voice perhaps softer than Eddie had ever heard it.

“You’re not old, Ernie.” Eddie laughed, no idea where this conversation was going.

“Ah, my son, Milton unfortunately disagrees with you there. He’s decided that I’m much too old to be managing the company and normally I’d just tell him to leave me alone but you see I’m starting to feel my age a little and maybe it would be nice to have a rest for a while.” Ernie sounded sad.

Eddie felt sad too. He really liked Ernie, sure, he annoyed him sometimes but he really enjoyed having someone looking out for him in a different way than his mother did. He’d met Milton a few times and the guy was a bonafide dick- caring more about money than anything else.

“I’m really going to miss working with you.” Eddie said simply and it was the truth, he really was.

There was a pause on the other end of the phone and for the first time in a while, Eddie felt a sharp wave of panic flood his body.

“Here’s the thing, Eddie.” Ernie spoke slowly, a break in his voice like he was filled with emotion. “Milton’s decided to make some changes in the company, in particular, our outside investments.”

Eddie’s head fell back onto the rest on his chair. _Shit._ Eddie would have to work so much harder if Milton had decided to decrease their yearly investment but he thought he might be able to make it work; as long as he still had some form of investment. 

“How much is he willing to give?” Eddie asked, his heart in his throat.

Ernie coughed awkwardly before continuing. “He’s decided to stop it completely.”

Eddie couldn’t respond; his heart was beating erratically and he felt like he couldn’t breathe. That was it, without this investment his business was going to go under. Everything he’d worked for was going to be worth nothing. He’d have to let his employees go, even though he loved each and every one of them. _Oh, God._ This was a disaster.

“I’m so sorry, Eddie. I tried to get him to change his mind but ultimately, it’s his decision now and he’s always been so stubborn. I just want you to know that this is devastating me but I believe you can pull through this.”

Eddie couldn’t help the tears pouring down his face. His entire life was crumbling right before him. He’d spent every penny of his father’s money on this business and he was going to lose it. He was a failure at 23.

He hung up the phone and stared at it. Right now, he really needed Bill and his support but Bill was working until 5 and wasn’t allowed to have his phone on shift. Eddie was just about to have a full-on meltdown in his office when a text popped up onto the lock-screen of his phone.

 _Richie Tozier_ \- _Hope your day is going well xx_

Eddie stared at the text until the screen went dark again. Richie always sent him cute texts like that throughout the day when he was working, like little reminders that he was thinking about him and Eddie found it adorable.

Without second-guessing himself, Eddie opened his phone and found Richie’s contact number, pressing it before he could stop himself.

“Hey, Eds, what have I done to deserve the amazing luxury of a phone call?” Richie said, picking up on the first ring. He was probably sitting at home, or at Stanley’s house with nothing much to do since he always texted back straight away at this time of day.

Eddie just sobbed in response. He hadn’t realised how much he needed to hear someone’s voice whether that be Bill or Richie but it instantly made him feel much less alone.

“Are you okay?” Richie said immediately, his voice low and fierce. “Are you hurt?”

“M’not hurt.” Eddie said, his voice not very clear through his tears.

Unidentifiable shouting came from the other end of the phone but Eddie couldn’t hear what was being said. It did sound like Richie though.

“Sorry about that.” Richie’s voice came back. “I’m in a car, just text me your address and I’ll get there as soon as I can.”

Normally, Eddie would refuse, say that he didn’t need him to do that but what Eddie really needed right now was comfort and Richie was going to provide that for him. He quickly hung up and sent Richie the address for his shop, already feeling better that someone was coming to help him.

Ten minutes later a sleek black town car pulled up outside. Eddie ignored it, assuming it was a new customer or someone come to visit one of his employees. He was sat on the kerb outside, his legs pulled up to his chest and he was waiting for some kind of beat-up old vehicle to appear with Richie inside, knowing that he wouldn’t be the type to have a nice car.

To Eddie’s complete and utter surprise, the door to the town car opened and out stepped a pair of familiar long legs, encased in their standard black jeans. And then suddenly Richie was rushing towards him, pulling him up and into a tight hug that had Eddie melting against him.

“Oh baby, what’s happened?” Richie practically cooed, running one of hands up Eddie’s back and curling into his hair. Eddie couldn’t help the sobs that wracked his body, probably wetting Richie’s t-shirt where his face was pressed into it but he thought Richie wouldn’t mind.

Eddie pulled his head back so that he could look at Richie- he was staring at Eddie with a huge amount of fondness and concern. It made Eddie feel slightly better but he couldn’t deny the sadness in his heart.

“My investor cut me off; I’m going to lose the business.” Eddie cried, pushing his head back onto Richie’s chest and immediately being pulled back into another strong hug.

Richie’s hand found its way back into Eddie’s hair, scratching slightly over his scalp. It made Eddie feel like he was being cared for in a way that he never had growing up- he had cold obsession from his mother and the best kind of friendship from Bill but he’d never had anyone he thought that maybe could fall in love with him. But in the way Richie looked at him and treated him, he thought that maybe this could turn into love. Maybe it was time Eddie let himself open up to the prospect of love.

“So the problem is money?” Richie asked, his voice sounding distracted as he continued to card his hand through Eddie’s hair.

“I know it’s stupid but I put everything into this business and it’s all going to be gone. I just thought I’d got it sussed out- I’ve got regular customers and people really seemed to like me but as usual, it wasn’t even up to me. Someone else gets to control my life.” Eddie rambled, burrowing his head further into Richie, feeling his strong arms wrapped around his shoulders.

Richie shushed him gently, pulling him in even closer. “It’s not stupid, don’t say that stuff. You did so well, you run an amazing business here.”

Eddie shook his head. “Ran.”

Richie laughed gently. “No, you are _running_ it. And I think maybe I have a solution for your little problem.”

And that’s how, less than three hours later, Eddie was sat in a chair opposite a desk. Richie was pacing behind him, giving him little smiles of encouragement as they waited to meet Richie’s ‘mystery investor.’ Eddie wasn’t getting his hopes up, he knew that nothing might come from this meeting and that just because someone put money into Richie and Stanley’s business didn’t mean they had money to spare for his.

“Are you nervous, Eds?” Richie said, smirking from across the room.

 _Yes_. Of course, Eddie felt nervous. This was a potential way to save his business and everything he had worked so hard for. If he made a good impression on this person then maybe everything would be fine. This was his one chance and he couldn’t fuck it up.

“Hey, Eddie.”

Eddie whipped his head around to look at the door, expecting to see some kind of older businessman like Ernie, someone who had enough money to fund multiple businesses, someone who was willing to listen to what Eddie had to say. Instead, all he saw was Stanley, walking through the room to sit behind the desk.

Eddie had met Stanley a few times while he’d been at the bar. He’d thought he was nice enough and clearly a good friend to Richie but he’d always got a bit of a stuck-up vibe from him like he thought he was better than Eddie. Richie told him that it was just part of Stanley’s act and that he didn’t really think that, he was a soft guy on the inside once you got past the hard layers. Eddie thought that must be true since Bill had been really sad when he’d told him about what had happened between them and Bill wouldn’t be so interested in someone who wasn’t nice to him.

“Are you going to sit in for the meeting too?” Eddie said, tilting his head at Stanley in confusion.

Stanley laughed quietly, shaking his head in a way that made his curls shake a little. Bill had spent at least two hours talking about Stanley’s hair and Eddie could see why now in the light of day; it did look very soft.

“No, I’m the person you’re meeting.” Stanley smiled warmly. “I’m the sole investor in this bar and numerous other businesses around the city. Richie told me about your shop and I have to say, I’m really interested.”

Eddie could have cried again right then and there. Stanley seemed like a much easier person to convince than some cold businessman who only cared about money and profit.

“However, there’s something else about you that interests me.” Stanley said, leaning across the table with his arms crossed. Eddie was confused and a little bit uncomfortable, he could feel himself growing smaller in his chair. He looked over at Richie but he just nodded at him encouragingly.

Eddie turned back to look at Stanley, feeling a little bit uneasy as the guy pulled out an envelope and slapped it on the desk. “What is that?”

“Oh, when I or someone in my inner circle like Richie gets close to someone new, I get my private investigator to run a little background check on them. Normally, it’s just boring stuff like credit checks and who your childhood friends were but Beverly, my investigator found some really _odd_ things in your past, Eddie.”

Eddie’s eyes flicked nervously to the door. If he ran, he could probably make it out before either of them could catch up with him but he’d come here with Richie and there was no way he could outrun a car- he was fucked.

“Don’t look so cornered, Eddie.” Stanley smiled again. Eddie couldn’t even turn to look at Richie. This was his worst nightmare; sure, losing his business would be bad but he’d rather fail a million times than spend the rest of his life in prison. _Fuck._

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” Eddie said quickly, keeping his gaze steadily on the wood of the desk.

Stanley rolled his eyes and took a sheet of paper out of the envelope.

“Sonia Kaspbrak? Henry Bowers? Brodie Wallace? Any of these names mean anything to you?”

Eddie looked back at the door again. He wasn’t even sure his legs would work to get him that far; he’d never felt so weak in his life.

Stanley sighed in frustration. “You’re misunderstanding me, Eddie. I know what your mother did to you and Bill told me about Bowers- how he lured you into the sewers and kept you there overnight. What you did was a reasonable response.”

Eddie shook his head quickly, refusing to believe him. “No, it wasn’t. I don’t know what you mean.”

A hand placed on Eddie’s shoulder made him jump. Richie stroked gentle circles into his back in a calming way but Eddie felt anything but calm. Not only was he freaking out at someone finding out his deepest, darkest secrets but he was _so_ confused. Why wasn’t Richie running away from him? Why wasn’t Stanley calling the police? Surely, by now he should be locked in a jail cell sweating away, not sitting in a comfy chair in someone’s plush office.

“It’s okay, Eds, just relax.” Richie said softly and Eddie wanted to relax but he couldn’t. This was such an absurd situation and Eddie had no idea how to handle it.

“I admire you, Eddie, I really do. Your mother smothered you half to death and you got out by whatever means you could. Henry Bowers tortured you for years and you escaped. And what that Brodie guy did to you; he fucking deserved it. I’m not going to call the police; that’s not why we called you down here.”

Eddie could barely breathe. He had no idea what was going on here and he wasn’t sure he even trusted Stanley. The guy could ruin his life with one phone call and that was not a good position to be in. He clearly wanted something but Eddie had no idea what he could do for him.

“Why did you bring me here?”

“Ah, the real question.” Stanley smiled again, looking a bit more genuine now. “I’m sure you’re a little bit confused as to why you’re here but the answer is much simpler than whatever you’re expecting. I’m more than willing to invest in your business. In fact, it would be my pleasure to help you to continue to live your dream.”

Eddie looked between Stan and Richie, trying to read their minds through their expressions. There had to be some kind of catch to this offer.

“However, I’m going to need some help in return.”

Richie grabbed onto his hand and gave it a gentle squeeze as if he were trying to assure Eddie that he was still there, that he wasn’t going to leave. It made Eddie feel slightly better but he was still completely on edge and had never been more terrified in his life.

“I run a different business here than the one we tell people we do. I won’t go into specifics now; there’ll be time for that later but let’s just say that most of what we do isn’t exactly legal. Although, I want to make it clear that I’ve changed things since my father died and our sole purpose isn’t profit anymore; we give millions every year to various charitable organisations.”

Eddie stared at Stanley in awe. All the things he’d suspected about what was going on since he’d entered this room, it had never once crossed his mind that Stanley might be a criminal but now that he had, he could see how everything suddenly made sense. How else would someone his age be able to afford to invest in random businesses?

“The very nature of my job means that I come across a lot of unsavoury characters, a number of whom actively want to see me hurt or gone completely. Obviously, these people are not good for business and I could use someone who wouldn’t mind getting their hands dirty and helping out when it was needed. All in return for a sizable investment in your company, of course.”

Eddie gawped at Stanley. This was like the dictionary definition of an offer he couldn’t refuse. And the thing with Eddie was he wasn’t a psychopath, he wasn’t crazy but he had no problem saying yes to this proposition. This meant that he’d be able to keep his business and be able to keep his father’s legacy alive for longer and that was all Eddie wanted.

“I accept.” Eddie said quickly, turning to look at Richie who smiled back in encouragement.

Stanley grinned too, giving him an accepting nod of his head. “I’m so glad, Eddie. It’s great to have you on the team. I’ve already instructed my accountant to transfer the first investment over to you, as well as a little something extra- maybe you could use some of it on Bill, the kid definitely needs a little help.”

Eddie completely agreed. If he wasn’t barely scraping by for money himself then he would certainly be helping Bill out more but he couldn’t really afford to do more than cover food money a couple of days a month. Hopefully, if working for Stanley meant that he had a little more money then he would definitely be able to help Bill out more.

“Speaking of Bill,” Stan turned to him with a slightly raised eyebrow. “did he say anything about me?”

 _Ah._ Of course, Stanley wanted to talk about Bill. Bill had barely shut up about Stan ever since that night, all the while pouting because he was upset that he wasn’t single and was with that guy who’d basically kicked him out of his house. Eddie wasn’t sure he wanted to get involved in whatever weird relationship Stanley had but Bill was important to him and he wanted to defend his best friend.

“He really liked you but he said that he wasn’t interested in being part of someone else’s relationship. I mean you _do_ have a boyfriend.”

Richie burst out laughing from beside Eddie until Stanley sent him a glare so threatening that he immediately stopped.

“Oh my God, Stan. I can’t decide what’s more hilarious: the idea of you with a boyfriend or the fact that someone ‘really liked you’ to care enough in the first place.” Richie’s shoulders shook as he spoke with his attempts to not laugh anymore.

“I’d suggest you shut up, Richard. Otherwise I think we know what Eddie’s first job will be.” Stanley smirked at them before his face dropped to a grimace. “I definitely do not have a boyfriend though and I really liked Bill too.”

Eddie agreed to give Stanley Bill’s phone number and they finished the meeting by discussing Eddie attending their weekly full staff meeting on Friday morning. They shook hands and then Stan had to leave to go and meet someone across town so Eddie followed him out, sitting on one of the bar stools in the bar as Richie poured him a drink. They clearly had things to discuss after what had happened in Stanley’s office.

“So…” Richie said, pushing a tumbler of whiskey towards Eddie. Eddie took a sip, wincing at the medicinal taste; he’d never really liked hard liquor.

“I get if you want me to leave you alone now.” Eddie said, looking down at the floor as he drank. He hated the thought of the sweet guy that he’d gotten to know wanting nothing to do with him.

Richie’s hand came up to smooth over Eddie’s hair, bringing him closer until their faces were almost touching. It was the closest they’d ever been to each other and Eddie couldn’t help himself and closed the final gap, pressing his lips to Richie’s. It was clear that had been the intention of the move as he reciprocated quickly, opening his mouth and deepening the kiss. All of the tension between them since they met was evident immediately and Eddie was overwhelmed by his attraction to Richie- this was the best first kiss he’d ever had with a guy, maybe best kiss ever.

Eddie pulled away, loving how Richie’s tried to chase him with his mouth like he already missed the contact.

“Please don’t tell me that you can’t do this.” Richie still had his eyes closed and was pouting like a child. “I’ll respect whatever you want but please say that we can keep on doing that.”

Eddie giggled slightly at Richie’s desperation. He’d known the guy was into him but he hadn’t known how much and the idea that it was a lot was very flattering. Plus he also really liked Richie too.

“We can definitely keep doing that. But I think first we need to talk, don’t you?”

Richie nodded slowly, opening his eyes so that he could look deeply into Eddie’s own. It wasn’t that Eddie was ashamed of any part of his past, he just knew that he wanted to be honest with Richie if they were going to start a relationship. After all, the foundation of every relationship should be honesty.

“I know that you know about my mother and about Henry Bowers and how he locked me in the sewers for a whole night and how I _reacted_ to those situations but what I really wanted to talk to you about was the other guy- Brodie Wallace.” Eddie spoke calmly, even though his heart was beating rapidly.

“Is he an ex-boyfriend?” Richie asked, keeping his gaze directly on Eddie’s eyes.

Eddie shook his head sadly. “It was last year and I’d been out for the night at some club. Bill was working late and he never wants to go out drinking anyway, sends all his spare money to his little brother. But I didn’t care, I was working so hard at the shop and I needed a break so on Fridays I’d go out and dance and maybe go home with a guy if that’s where the evening headed. But this particular night I just got a bit drunk and then decided to go home.”

Eddie realised as he was speaking that he was still holding Richie’s hand and he was, in fact, squeezing it rather tightly. It probably was hurting him but Eddie didn’t want to let go.

“I was walking down the street to try and get a taxi when this hand grabbed me and pulled me against the wall. It was this guy, I didn’t even know who he was and I guessed that I’d dropped my wallet or he wanted some directions or something. Guess I was just really stupid.”

Richie wrapped his arms around Eddie, pulling him in close and rubbing his back in a caring way. He could probably see where this story was going but Eddie knew for his own sanity that he’d have to finish it; he just had to get it out.

“It was really dark and there was nobody around and he- uh- he pushed me to my knees and took advantage of me. I tried to fight back but he was so much bigger than me and he had a knife. It was over in a matter of minutes and when I got home Bill was there and he took care of me but nothing’s really been the same since then. That’s why I never let you take me on a date, I was so scared to let anyone in.”

Neither of them spoke for a while- Richie just holding Eddie tightly. Eddie wasn’t scared though, he knew Richie cared about him and the way he was holding him made him feel like everything was going to be okay, that they were going to finally get to be together.

“Oh Eddie, baby, I’m so sorry that happened to you.” Richie cooed, stroking circles on his back. “I completely understand you needing some time.”

Eddie nodded, feeling safe now that he was tucked into Richie’s arms. He could just stay there forever and maybe he’d get the chance to; that was what he wanted.

“I don’t think I need any more.” Eddie said, his voice low and a little bit muffled from where he was pressed into Richie’s chest.

“More what?” Richie asked, his breath tickling the back of Eddie’s neck where his hair tapered out.

Eddie pulled out of the embrace enough so that he could make eye-contact with Richie, tilting his head to look at him sweetly. “I don’t need any more time. I want to be with you; I want to be _yours.”_

Richie inhaled deeply, his grip on Eddie tightening and his eyes growing wider at Eddie’s words.

“I think you already are.” With that, Richie pulled him in even closer until he sat on his lap and emphasised his words by continuing their earlier kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys should come follow me on Socials if you want, I'll answer any questions and even do some prompts if anyone wants?  
> Tumblr- thecoolestlemon  
> Twitter- @CoolestLemon
> 
> I've also got some other fics that you can read if you like these:  
> * At My Most Beautiful- A Reddie/Stenbrough Series  
> * Out of Time


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bill put his phone down so he could properly freak out. He was going on a date with Stanley fucking Uris. He hadn’t ever expected to hear from the guy again but here he was texting him, pretty much begging Bill to give him a second chance. There was no way that Bill was going to no to that. 
> 
> Bill and Stanley go on a date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so so sorry that it's taken me so long to update this. I've had a weird month and I've also been trying to write some other things, so feel free to check them out. 
> 
> Unlike the previous chapters, this just focuses on one 'event' (Bill and Stan's date) and their feelings for each other. Hopefully, my intentions come across well as they're both supposed to seem like they're soft on the inside and really like each other. 
> 
> As usual, if there's anything that you particularly liked then feel free to let me know in the comments and Kudos. Thanks for your patience and I hope to get the next chapter out sooner.

**_Stanley Uris Goes on a Date_ **

**_Stanley [5:04pm]_ ** _– Hey_

**_Stanley [5:04pm]_ ** _– It’s Stanley by the way._

**_Stanley [5:05pm]_ ** _-Stanley Uris._

**_Bill [5:06pm]_ ** _-Oh, hey. How did you get my number?_

**_Stanley [5:06pm]_ ** _-Eddie gave it to me._

**_Stanley [5:06pm]_ ** _\- I wanted to apologise for that morning._

**_Bill [5:07pm]_ ** _-For your boyfriend?_

Stanley groaned and nearly threw his phone across the room. He couldn’t believe that the first person he’d actually wanted to get to know in a romantic sense had managed to get the complete wrong impression. He wondered what Mike had said to Bill to get him to think that he had a boyfriend. It was just so frustrating.

**_Stanley [5:09pm]_ ** _-I don’t have a boyfriend._

**_Bill [5:09pm]_ ** _-You should tell that to the guy you’re living with._

**_Stanley [5:10pm]_ ** _-Did he say that he was my boyfriend?_

**_Bill [5:10pm]_ ** _-Well, no but he was glaring at me and he told me that you don’t give your number out to ‘hook-ups’ so I’m thinking that you have some kind of open relationship and he’s not happy with it._

**_Stanley [5:11pm]_ ** _-I promise you that I don’t have a boyfriend. That guy was just a friend but he’s not around anymore. I’m sorry that he said that to you._

**_Bill [5:13pm]_ ** _– {BILL IS TYPING…}_

**_Bill [5:17pm]_ ** _– It’s okay I guess._

**_Stanley [5:18pm]_ ** _-Would you let me try and make it up to you?_

**_Bill [5:18pm]_ ** _– I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes._

**_Stanley [5:19pm]_ ** _– Trust me, there’s no one that you need to worry about._

**_Stanley [5:19pm]_ ** _– Dinner?_

**_Bill [5:20pm]_ ** _– I’m working until close every night this week except tonight. Maybe next week?_

**_Stanley [5:21pm]_ ** _– I can be free tonight if you want?_

**_Bill [5:22pm]_ ** _– Sure. That works for me._

**_Stanley [5:22pm]_ ** _– Great. I’ll pick you up at 7._

Bill put his phone down so he could properly freak out. _He was going on a date with Stanley fucking Uris._ He hadn’t ever expected to hear from the guy again but here he was texting him, pretty much begging Bill to give him a second chance. There was no way that Bill was going to no to that. The only problem was he had no idea what a date with someone like Stanley would entail. And not to mention the fact that nothing in his wardrobe was exactly date-worthy. Bill hadn’t even been on a date since his ex-girlfriend, Audra had broken up with him over a year ago and even then they’d never really gone anywhere very nice since they were both broke college students.

He picked out his favourite flannel shirt from the pile on the floor but it clearly hadn’t been washed for a couple of weeks and he didn’t have time to go to the laundromat or any change for the machines right now. The only other solution he could think of was to borrow something from Eddie but he had to be careful since most of his clothes would be much too small on Bill. There had to be something that would fit him though.

**_Bill [5:40pm]_ ** _– I’M GOING ON A DATE WITH STANLEY TONIGHT_

**_Bill [5:40pm]_ ** _– Can I please borrow something to wear????_

**_Bill [5:45pm]_ ** _– Eddie???_

Bill sighed in frustration. Eddie was always such a fast replier except when Bill really needed him, like now. He’d just have to deal with Bill borrowing something to wear; he was sure that he wouldn’t mind anyway. Not for the sake of Bill’s love life anyway.

Opening Eddie’s closet, Bill flipped through a whole range of polo shirts before he hit anything that would be appropriate for tonight. Bill pulled out a black button-down and held it up to himself in the mirror before deciding that the colour was much too dark for him. He needed something lighter and better suited to his colouring.

After a few more minutes of searching, he came across a light-blue shirt that would go perfectly with his colouring. Eddie always said he looked best when he was wearing blue and the material looked more comfortable than some of the others in there. Feeling confident, Bill pulled it on and buttoned it up quickly before turning to the mirror to examine himself. It wasn’t the most amazing outfit but it was the most he could do on short notice with such little resources.

**_Bill [6:10pm]_ ** _– I’m borrowing your blue button-down. K, thanks._

After getting dressed, Bill sat on the sofa. He wanted something to drink but he was absolutely terrified of spilling anything on himself and having to change again. Instead, he just sat there scrolling through his phone and feeling more nervous for a date than he ever had. He considered just cancelling the entire thing; he was clearly too worked up. But then again he desperately wanted to see Stanley again.

Ever since he’d spent the night at Stanley’s house, Bill had been minorly obsessing about him. It wasn’t just because he was _Stanley Uris_ , Bill wasn’t like that. He didn’t care about money or material things like that. Bill liked Stanley because he was sweet and he was kind, not to mention one of the most beautiful people Bill had ever seen. He’d been waxing lyrical to Eddie for at least a week about how soft his hair was, how amazing it felt to wrap a curl around his finger and then watch the way it recoiled when he pulled away. He’d spent hours just touching his hair after Stanley had fallen asleep, wanting to memorise that simple touch because it seemed so unlikely that he’d ever have the chance again.

By the time 7 o’clock rolled around, Bill was practically vibrating with nerves. Where was Stanley even going to take him? It was unlikely that this date was going to be like any Bill had ever been on, this wasn’t going to be Early Bird Specials and cheap beer. Bill hoped that Stanley didn’t mind that Bill wasn’t clued into the best things to order or drink at the type of places he frequented since Bill barely had enough spare cash to spend on himself and he definitely wasn’t going to spend it in a place he felt uncomfortable.

Stanley messaged him to say that he was outside at exactly 7 and Bill practically ran downstairs. Outside his apartment building, looking entirely out of place, was a sleek black car. There were tinted windows and it definitely looked like it was chauffeured. Bill had never been in a car like it and while the sheer luxury of it excited him, it also made him more nervous. But then the window rolled down and a head of curly hair popped out.

“Bill, hey.” Stanley grinned, waving his hand as if Bill couldn’t spot his car. Like the car didn’t stick out like a sore thumb in this neighbourhood.

Bill couldn’t help the grin that graced his own face. He hadn’t even realised that he’d built Stanley up in his head as some kind of untouchable person, maybe it was a sub-conscious self-preservation technique from when he’d thought that he had a boyfriend but now that he saw him again, he remembered how easy he found it was to talk to him. _God, he really liked him._

“Hey, S-Stanley.” Bill made his way to the car door, which opened for him. Stanley scooted over to the other side of the back seat so Bill could have room. Bill folded himself into the seat, feeling a little self-conscious once he caught sight of Stanley’s outfit. Tight, grey dress pants and a crisp white shirt that just looked like they were made of expensive fabric and suited him perfectly. Bill felt like _he_ was the one out of place now in Eddie’s button-down.

Stanley pressed a quick kiss to his cheek, the skin there immediately going red as Bill blushed deeply. “Has anyone ever told you that blue is your colour?”

Bill nodded quickly. Suddenly, he felt a lot better about his clothes.

“Good, because it _really_ is.” Stanley reached a hand up to absent-mindedly brush a piece of fluff off Bill’s shoulder. Bill could feel red-hot heat in the place where Stan had touched him, it reminded him of the way he’d touched him _that night._ It reminded him of how much he wanted Stanley to touch him again, over and over and over again.

“S-so, where are you taking me?” Bill asked, turning completely to look at Stanley with a soft smile on his face. He put his hand in between them, hoping that Stanley would catch on and take hold of it.

Stanley casually placed his own hand on top of Bill’s, wrapping his long fingers around his palm. Bill’s heartbeat picked up slightly. “There’s a restaurant downtown that I think you’d like.”

Oh. Food was a difficult one, probably would likely lead to a situation like when they first met at the bar. Bill would have no idea what to order and it would all just get really awkward. He wanted to prove to Stanley that they were a good match but he had no idea how to do that while feeling completely out of his depth. But also, Stanley clearly knew better about this kind of thing and if he thought Bill would like it maybe he should just try it. It wasn’t that Bill was trying to impress Stanley, he just wanted to not look stupid.

The journey to the restaurant was quick from there. Bill was used to taking buses and expecting to spend at least an hour stuck in traffic trying to get anywhere but Stan’s car zipped down side-roads and backstreets until they pulled up in front of what looked to be a disused warehouse. If it hadn’t been for the valet parking station outside, Bill might have thought that he was about to be murdered.

“This place opened last month and it’s already won awards. Their seafood is indescribable.” Stanley grinned, squeezing Bill’s hand before opening the car door.

Bill took his time getting out of the car, trying to remember the last time he’d eaten seafood. Eddie liked salmon but he didn’t really have the money to be spending on extravagance like that regularly. He’d eaten some sushi last year on his birthday and it was nice but it was only from a cheap place near their apartment. Bill did not have the hugest experience with seafood at all.

Once inside the restaurant, they’d been taken through the large room of full tables right to the back where it was more private. The back wall of the restaurant was all glass, looking out onto the docks where strings of fairy lights had been strung up. Bill was in awe; this was definitely the nicest place he’d ever been to.

Stanley ordered some wine while he pulled out a chair and ushered Bill into it. Tall, leather menus sat in front of them, intimidating Bill more than a little. He opened it slowly, immediately getting lost in the appetisers. He presumed that Stan was going to be paying but he still didn’t want to order anything that was wildly expensive and end up looking like some kind of gold-digger.

“Anything catch your fancy?” Stanley asked, peeking over the top of his menu to look at Bill. Bill, who had barely even actually looked at the options, blinked back in a daze.

“Sorry, I haven’t decided yet.” Bill mumbled, looking back down at the page with its numerous choices.

Stanley put his menu down and crossed his arms on top of it, looking at Bill with concern. “Is this too much? I read online that they sourced a lot of their produce from Maine and I thought you’d like that. We can go somewhere else if you want?”

Stanley looked almost stricken at the idea of having taken Bill to the wrong place. Of course, this was a lovely restaurant and Bill felt lucky to be there at all because it was definitely not the type of place he could afford on his coffee-shop salary. But still, the descriptions of the dishes were elaborate and seemed almost scary to Bill, who could barely recognise anything.

“No.” He said decisively, immediately rewarded by a relieved grin on Stanley’s face. “It just might be best if you ordered for both of us.”

Stanley nodded curtly and the next time the waitress came over he ordered an array of dishes from the menu, before handing it back to her and turning his full attention over to Bill. He looked nervous, his fingers pulling at each other and his eyes flicking around Bill’s face. Bill thought it was cute that he cared so much what Bill thought about the date.

“I’m sorry- I don’t know how to do this. I never _date_.” Stanley said eventually, looking down defeatedly. “This is ridiculous, I’m so sorry, Bill.”

Stanley was ready to call the whole thing a day and just take Bill home. Maybe he wasn’t supposed to date and was supposed to be single for the rest of his life. Maybe it was too much to imagine being professionally successful and having a relationship, especially with someone like Bill.

Bill smiled at him gently and reached across the table to take his hand, his nimble fingers wrapping around his own. It felt lovely like it had in the car and Stanley thought that maybe he would quite like to hold Bill’s hand every day. He could imagine going about domestic errands with Bill, holding his hand as they walked around the supermarket or on spring walks around the city. It made something in his heart _yearn_ like he hadn’t felt it in years and it reminded him how much he just wanted someone to love.

“Sure, this isn’t the type of place I’d normally come to but the only ‘eating out’ I can afford is when Eddie orders a pizza and lets me have some of it.” Bill shrugged, keeping hold of Stanley’s hand. “But I was thinking maybe afterwards I could take you somewhere, finish the date on my vibe?”

And that was how an hour and a half later, Bill was directing Stanley’s driver to take them to Canalside Green, a park not too far away from Bill and Eddie’s apartment and somewhere Bill went when he needed to get away from everything for a while. It overlooked the Canal, a large area of water than ran throughout the city and was horrendously filthy but was quite nice to look at. They’d stopped off a cheap off-license on the way and bought a bottle of the cheapest wine they could find.

Bill guided Stanley towards his favourite bench overlooking the water. They were still holding hands, neither of them wanted to let go and it really added to the romantic atmosphere of the location. Across the Canal, lights twinkled in the windows of the fancy apartments in the high-rise buildings. Bill had always wanted to live somewhere like that but he knew he was unlikely to ever be able to afford it.

“This is amazing.” Stanley said, looking around him with an expression of awe. Bill felt almost proud that he’d managed to draw such enthusiasm from someone like Stanley who’d seen so many amazing things in the world. It made his heart melt even more towards the man and how when he grinned his eyes crinkled in a way that made Bill want to press kisses right there.

“I used to come here a lot when we first moved here. I was so young and full of dreams.” Bill said wistfully, taking a sip from the wine and trying not to wince at the sharp taste.

Stanley laughed. “You’re still young.” The sound was light and airy in the quiet night. Their hands were still entwined tightly on the seat between them but Bill wished that the distance was less.

Bill shifted ever so slightly closer to Stanley as he spoke. “Honestly, sometimes I feel like I’m at least ten years older- I’m too tired to have big dreams now.”

“What were your dreams?” Stanley asked, bending towards him slightly so they were now even closer. He could feel his heartbeat pick up and wondered if Bill could feel it where their wrists met.

Bill sighed deeply, running his free hand through the front of his hair. “I wanted to be a writer, I have most of a first draft of a novel on my laptop but Georgie needed more help so I had to start sending more money home and now, I can’t even remember the last time I wrote a word.”

Stanley looked up at him, a gentle frown between his eyebrows. He could see the bags underneath Bill’s eyes and he knew how often the poor boy worked, doing his best to send money to his brother. It seemed unfair that Bill worked so hard and earned so little while Stanley had so much. If he didn’t know that Bill would be too proud to accept, he’d offer to help out or even pay for Georgie’s surgeries and healthcare. Stanley just wished there was something he could do.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to get all mopey.” Bill said with a shrug and a small smile.

“I think the theme of this date is us just apologizing to each other.” Stanley laughed. The wind rustled through the trees around them and one of Stanley’s curls fell out of place, landing right in front of his left eye. Bill reached over and with a gentle hand, brushed it back into place. His hand lingered slightly around Stanley’s cheek, the touch warm and making Stanley blush in the very spot it lay.

“Maybe we should make a pact not to say sorry anymore.” Bill said, his face so open and genuine and making Stanley _feel things._

Stanley couldn’t help but smile. “Oh good, then I won’t have to apologize for this.” He said, reaching over and cupping Bill’s face and bringing it to his own in a chaste kiss. He pulled back to check that Bill was okay with this but Bill didn’t give him the chance, bringing his own hand to the back of Stanley’s neck and pulling him back in.

The kiss got dirty fast, considering the last time they’d done this they’d been much more inebriated. Bill seemed to know how to kiss and Stanley could suddenly imagine him in college, one of the quiet, cooler kids who _everyone_ wanted to make out with. If Stanley had been at college or even, god-forbid, high-school with Bill then he’d probably have wanted to make out with him.

Stanley had never really spent much time on the kissing stage. He was torturously shy in school, spending most of his time hiding behind Richie. He’d gained some confidence when he’d started college, made a few new friends and stopped hiding so much. Then his dad had died and everything had been pushed over to him and he just couldn’t juggle everything. Richie had saved him, as usual, had lifted him back onto his feet and fixed everything that needed fixing and stuck around for him. When grief filled every part of his body- unexplainable and dark, a thick tar that felt like it had replaced his blood just constantly reminding him of all the things he was doing wrong- Stanley had gotten into partying. A different club every night, a different guy’s bed every morning, whatever party drug was pushed into his hand in the bathroom. He wasn’t into kissing; he was into short, hard fucks and being so high he was practically bouncing off the roof. Until, of course, Richie had found him passed out with blood dripping down his face and a heartbeat slow enough to scare him so badly that he didn’t think he’d ever recover. Stanley hadn’t touched anything stronger than wine since but something about kissing Bill Denbrough made him feel like he was still high in a bathroom downtown.

Bill pulled back, his lips deliciously rosy and his eyes half-glazed over. Stanley’s stomach flipped with _want._ It wasn’t just that he wanted to sleep with Bill again, he wanted Bill to be there when he woke up, one arm flung around his waist casually. He wanted Bill to be there like all the time, flashing him those grins and holding his hand and wanting him back.

“Do you want to come home with me?” Stanley asked before he’d really thought about what he was saying.

Bill looked surprised but not unhappy about it. “On the first date, how modern.” He grinned, his gaze still trained on Stanley’s lips like he just wanted to dive back in. They were so close now that Stanley was practically in Bill’s lap, not that he minded at all, it was a rather comfortable place to be.

“I mean, we don’t have to if you don’t want to.” Stanley tried to make it sound casual but he couldn’t help how raspy his voice was.

Bill shrugged, the hand that was still caressing the back of Stanley’s head scratching light circles into the thinner hair at the nape of his neck. It felt nice, like the kind of thing you’d do to a boyfriend to comfort them after a long day. Stanley wanted that _so_ badly.

“I don’t remember saying no.”

-

Bill woke up the next morning once again in Stanley’s bed, except this time he was alone. A clock on the nightstand told him that it was still early, still plenty of time for him to get across town for his shift at the coffee shop. He wondered if he could ask Stanley to order him a car, although he didn’t have any cash on him so he’d have to ask Eddie to sub him when he got back.

He quickly put his clothes back on and stepped out of the room. Unlike last time he was here, he knew where he was going now, was less daunted by the sheer extravagance of the place with its high ceiling and expensive, minimalistic style. It didn’t surprise Bill that Stanley’s house looked like this but it almost seemed like no-one lived here. There were no photo frames with family pictures or the type of knick-knacks that were strewn around Bill and Eddie’s apartment.

“Oh, you’re up.” Stanley said with a smile, noticing him from where he stood behind the kitchen island. Something smelled wonderful and the gentle sound of sizzling in a pan made Bill’s stomach rumble loudly. “I made breakfast.”

Bill wandered over to the counter and he nearly swooned at the sight of a freshly made stack of pancakes, bowls of fresh fruit and what was in fact, a pan of bacon on the grill.

“You cook?” Bill asked dumbly, watching Stanley deftly dab the bacon with a napkin to remove the grease before placing it gently onto another plate. It was so in control- there was no fanning the smoke alarm with a tea-towel or ingredients all over the floor like there would be if Bill had tried to cook anything requiring more steps than just throwing something in the microwave.

Stanley took two plates in hand and began walking to a table that had been set on the other side of the room. Bill didn’t think he’d seen a table set nicely anywhere other than a restaurant before; he’d always just assumed that no-one in the world bothered with that kind of set up just to eat. But then again, if anyone was going to want to use the correct fork, or look at flowers while they ate, it would be Stanley. It was cute too, gold placemats and cutlery over a dark green tablecloth- looking like something out of a show home or an interior design magazine.

“I try to when I can.” Stanley shrugged, going back to the counter for the rest of the food and depositing it on the table. He gestured for Bill to sit down and they both took their seats beside each other.

Bill wasn’t even sure where to start on the food. He hadn’t really eaten breakfast since he was a teenager and even then he’d just grabbed a piece of toast on the way to school. Back before Georgie got hurt, his mother would sometimes make pancakes on the weekends but that had been so long ago now that he could barely remember what they tasted like, whether he’d liked them, whether he’d been a maple syrup guy or a fresh fruit guy.

Stanley served himself a couple of pancakes and added some berries to the top. Food was something he was passionate about, had been since he’d been clean. It was his therapist’s idea that he learns to cook, back when he was in his bad place and the very next day he’d taught himself to a cook a simple pasta dish. He liked the control it gave him, he could control every single thing that went into his body if he cooked it himself and he chose to use all organic ingredients so he knew there would be no chemicals or pesticides.

He was about to begin eating when he noticed that Bill hadn’t put anything on his plate yet. “Is something wrong? I can make you something else if you don’t like pancakes.”

Bill shook his head, still looking intently at the spread on the table. “It’s just, I don’t really eat breakfast, I’m not sure where to start.”

“You don’t eat breakfast?” Stanley asked, horrified. Breakfast was the most important meal of the day and he lived by that, always making sure to eat a sufficient amount to begin the day. He couldn’t even fathom that someone deliberately didn’t eat breakfast.

Bill looked down at his empty plate, sheepishly. He didn’t want to have to get into the whole money conversation again but in truth, he couldn’t really afford to eat three times a day so he chose to skip breakfast since there was always a mangled sandwich or burned pastry that he could eat at work for lunch and he didn’t get _too_ hungry in the morning. He’d rather be hungry in the morning than not be able to sleep at night due to the rumbling in his stomach.

Stanley watched Bill look away and he felt a sharp pang inside. He was so _insensitive_ , every time he and Bill were having a nice time, he just had to slip up and make it about money. Poor Bill, having to sit here and listen to Stanley talk about how lovely it was to eat so much food every day when he could barely afford _any_ food.

“Here.” Stanley said quickly, spearing some bacon and putting it on Bill’s plate before adding a pancake. “Start with a bit of savoury and a bit of sweet, I like the way they taste together.”

Bill’s writer brain just about went crazy with that statement. He wanted to write so badly, to create a character with light brown curls and the brightest eyes anyone had ever seen, whose mouth tasted of the richest honey in the world and whose thighs tasted like saltwater when you were drowning in the ocean. They’d done more the night before than their first night together- exploring each other with tongues and mouths and fingers. Bill wanted to call his manager and tell her he was sick and take Stanley back into the bedroom and show him just how well savoury and sweet tasted together.

Instead, Bill chewed on his piece of bacon and tried not to look at the gap of pale skin between Stanley’s t-shirt and his sleep shorts. It was intoxicating, Stanley himself was intoxicating and Bill could easily imagine himself drunk on the power of his affection. He’d never even thought about wanting something like this but now, he could see himself in five years, in ten, waking up next to the same face. He wanted mornings with breakfast at this table and then back to bed for a leisurely fuck before Stanley went to work. Leaving felt like it might just break his heart and suddenly, he wanted to google whether it was possible to fall in love in two days or had he always just been a hopeless romantic destined to get his heart broken.

Stanley sipped from a mug of hot, black coffee- the kind his father always made for him before school. He’d never grown out of his coffee habit despite kicking almost everything else; there was something about the bitter taste that just made him feel ready to start the day.

“What time do you get off tonight?” Stanley asked, popping a blueberry into his mouth and biting down to release the sweetness inside.

Bill swallowed his bite of pancake quickly. “We close at six but I’m staying behind to help restock and clean so I won’t be out until at least nine. And then I’ve got to go grocery shopping since all I have at home is like one pack of instant ramen.” He looked apologetically at Stanley, he too wished they could do something tonight but it just wasn’t logical.

“Instant ramen?” Stanley wrinkled his nose in disgust. He couldn’t believe people actually ate that stuff but he did also know that it was cheap and at least it was actual food. It was better than Bill starving to death. He wished there was a way that he could get Bill to eat real food without him getting annoyed- maybe he should just invite him over for dinner every night. Maybe one day, they could move in together and then Stanley could cook for him every meal and they could have mornings like this every day.

An alarm beeped somewhere from Bill’s pocket and made them both jump. Bill checked it and blanched, throwing his napkin onto the table and standing up.

“Shit, I’ve got to go. I’m sorry I can’t help you wash the dishes.” Bill said, shooting an apologetic glance at Stanley as he pushed his feet into the shoes he’d left by the door.

Stanley walked over to him with a smile. “Don’t worry about it.” He said, as he pulled Bill down for a soft kiss. It was so tempting to turn it into more, to move his arms lower or to open his mouth but he knew he had to let Bill go and hopefully he’d see him soon.

Bill left Stanley’s house the second time feeling like he was the luckiest man alive. 

**Author's Note:**

> Title is from 'Good as Gold (Stupid as Mud)' from The Beautiful South


End file.
